British friend Ni Yinghua (Ena Niedergang）

At the donation ceremony

By Wang Ying and Zhou Cunjun

On the afternoon of 6th March, a donation ceremony was held at Jiangsu Huayi Tie-dye Museum. Barry and Ena Niedergang, British sinologists, entrusted a tie-dyed silk scarf, which they received during their first visit to China 40 years ago, to Jing Chuhan, an ambassador for Sino-British cultural exchange, via video link, to let the intangible cultural heritage treasure return to its birthplace —— Nantong Huayi Intangible Cultural Heritage Tie-dye Museum.

In 1986, as one of the first group of tourists from Swansea, England to visit China, Barry and Ena Niedergang came to Nantong. Nantong government presented them with a special gift —— a tie-dyed silk scarf from Hai’an Tie-dye Factory (now Jiangsu Huayi Group).

After they returned to Britain, the scarf became the most precious collection of the couple. They carefully kept it at home, and only wore it on important occasions of China-Britain cultural exchange. In the past few years, Barry and Ena Niedergang have been working in the field of Chinese culture studies, travelling between China and the UK, building bridges for cultural communication through their actions.

In 2026, Jing Chuhan from Hai’an went to study and live in Swansea, UK. At an event, she met Barry and Ena Niedergang. In the talk, the couple told Jing Chuhan the unforgettable experience of their visit to China in 1986, and carefully took out the tie-dyed scarf which had been treasured for many years. Jing Chuhan was deeply moved by the friendship that crossed mountains and seas. She casually took a video of the scarf and shared it online. Unexpectedly, it garnered more than 500,000 views and also accidentally started the scarf's ‘journey home’.

Qian Lixia, a senior staff member of Huayi Group, recognized their product at first sight, and successfully contacted Jing Chuhan.

The coincidence that crossed mountains and seas filled Jing Chuhan with deep emotion, ‘the feeling is really fantastic. It’s like a complete cycle. All the fated connections have come full circle.’ She immediately told Barry and Ena Niedergang that the scarf was from her hometown Hai’an, and that she had booked an air ticket back to China and planned to pay a special visit to the Huayi Tie-dye Museum, to see what her hometown’s intangible cultural heritage crafts look like now. ‘They were overjoyed to hear this, feeling as if it were all destined.’ Jing Chuhan said, ‘They decided right away to entrust the scarf to me, and let me bring it back to Nantong, to the museum as a permanent collection, so that the friendship and craftsmanship can be seen by more people.’

At the donation ceremony, Jiangsu Huayi Group presented Mr. and Mrs. Niedergang with a caviar-woven scarf, a tie, and a postcard symbolizing the everlasting friendship. According to a relevant person in charge from Huayi Group, the scarf, the story behind it about Sino-British friendship, and publications reflecting the friendly exchanges between the two countries will be displayed in the museum, allowing every visitor to feel the profound friendship between China and the UK spanning 40 years through this small scarf.

‘This is a beautiful bond, not only existing among the people of both places, but also making it extremely important to maintain this connection and friendship,’ said Barry Niedergang on the other end of the video call.

【背景阅读】

英国夫妇将40年前获赠的非遗珍品回赠南通

一条丝巾牵起40年中英友情

3月6日下午，一场捐赠仪式在江苏华艺集团扎染博物馆举行：英国汉学家倪百瑞、倪英华夫妇通过视频连线，将40年前首次访华时获赠的扎染真丝围巾托付给中英文化交流使者景楚涵，让这件非遗珍品重回它的诞生地——南通华艺非遗扎染博物馆。

1986年，作为英国斯旺西市首批来华观光的游客，倪百瑞、倪英华夫妇到访南通。南通市政府将一件特殊的礼品赠予夫妇二人——一条来自海安扎染厂（现江苏华艺集团）的扎染真丝围巾。

回到英国后，这条围巾便成了夫妇二人心中最珍贵的收藏。他们将其悉心珍藏于家中，唯有在中英文化交流的重大场合，才会郑重穿戴。多年来，倪百瑞、倪英华夫妇始终深耕中国文化研究，奔走于中英两地之间，用实际行动搭建起文化沟通的桥梁。

2026年，海安人景楚涵远赴英国斯旺西读书、定居。一次活动上，她与倪百瑞、倪英华夫妇相遇。闲聊间，夫妇二人向景楚涵讲述了1986年访华的难忘经历，还小心翼翼地取出了那条珍藏多年的扎染围巾。景楚涵被这段跨越山海的友谊深深打动，随手拍下围巾的视频分享至网络，没想到竟收获了50多万的观看量，也意外开启了这条围巾的“回家之路”。

华艺集团老员工钱丽霞看到视频，一眼就认出了这是他们的产品，并顺利与景楚涵取得了联系。

这份跨越山海的巧合让景楚涵心生感慨：“这种感觉真的很奇妙，就像一个完整的循环，所有的缘分都圆满了。”她当即告诉倪百瑞夫妇，这条围巾源自自己的家乡海安，并且自己已经订好了回国的机票，计划专程拜访华艺扎染博物馆，看看家乡非遗手艺如今的模样。“他们听完特别惊喜，觉得这一切就像命中注定，”景楚涵说，“他们当即决定，把这条围巾托付给我，让我带回南通，送到博物馆永久收藏，让这份友谊与手艺能被更多人看见。”

捐赠仪式上，江苏华艺集团特意为倪百瑞、倪英华夫妇回赠了一条鱼子缬围巾、一条领带以及一张象征着友谊传承的明信片。据华艺集团相关负责人介绍，后续将把这条围巾、背后的中英友谊故事，以及反映两国友好交流的出版物一同陈列在博物馆中，让每一位参观者都能透过这条小小的围巾，感受中英两国跨越40年的深厚情谊。

“这是一段美好的缘分，不仅存在于两地的人民之中，维系这份联结与友谊更是一件无比重要的事。”视频连线的另一端，倪百瑞说。